The
church has been very important to the African-American community. In
North Omaha, the church has been a source of spiritual motivation by
providing Sunday morning services, Bible study, and Vacation Bible
School. Churches also serve the community by feeding the hungry, housing
the homeless, providing college scholarships and job training services,
serving in the Civil Rights Movement, and a variety of other services.
When looking through African-American history in North Omaha, the church
can be found at the center of all other aspects.

North Omaha has a long, complex
history of Civil Rights that remains largely unnoticed. Not only is it
the birthplace of an important political and cultural leader, Malcolm
Little, but also home of one of the longest running Black newspapers,
the Omaha Star. From a small town barbershop on 24th & Spencer to
marches and demonstrations that changed people’s lives—Omaha has
captured people’s attention from Presidential candidates to the common
folk. However, much of this history remains largely invisible…until now.

African
Americans have faced numerous obstacles over the years including
several within the field of education. From segregation, to unfair
hiring practices, to outdated textbooks, to dilapidated buildings,
African Americans are still persevering. African American parents
realized that their children were not receiving an equal education and
decided to take legal action against the Omaha Public Schools district
in the hopes of having a more integrated educational system. The courts
intervened to assist in the desegregation of OPS. Eventually mandatory
busing was put into place essentially integrating the district in the
1970's. In 1999 the Omaha Public School district ended mandatory busing.
Students could then choose to go to any school they wanted, but most
chose their neighborhood schools. Due to the issues surrounding
redlining, the practice of steering members of certain racial groups to
live in certain areas of the city, race based neighborhoods are causing
the classroom images of segregation from the past to slowly creep back
into some schools.

Despite segregation and racism, African Americans in Omaha created a
vibrant local culture and found ways to have fun. Some of the unique
leisure and entertainment opportunities for local black people included
Kellom swimming pool, a putt-putt golf course, a skating rink and
several theaters where local people saw concerts and plays. By looking
at entertainment in North Omaha, we can see the many positive ways
African Americans built their community.

Jazz played an important part in the history of North Omaha. Preston
Love once said, "If New York, Chicago, and Kansas City were the major
leagues of jazz, Omaha was the Triple-A.” Omaha was a stop for many of
the top jazz musicans in the nation from the 1920s to the 1960s. The
thriving jazz culture also gave birth to many great native Omahan
musicans. Most African American jazz musicians were not allowed to play
with the white musicians, those wanting to hear them were very limited
on where they could go. Because of this, the Dreamland Ballroom at 24th
and Grant Streets became the popular destination for lovers of jazz
music in Omaha. The Dreamland Ballroom was where most famous African
American jazz musicians played, giving members of the community a chance
to experience the energy and excitement of the era.

In the early 1900s, African-Americans sought a better life in the North.
Jim Crow Laws in the South reinforced segregation and discrimination.
Agricultural problems also made it difficult for African-Americans to
make a living in the South. African-Americans migrated to Omaha seeking
better jobs. Labor recruiters, northern newspapers that were sent south,
and simple word of mouth helped to keep a steady flow of
African-American workers coming north during WWI. African-Americans
often migrated north on trains or buses, traveling with limited
possessions, but filled with hope for a better life. African-Americans
in Omaha settled first in South Omaha for the packing jobs. Then they
moved to the north part because of available housing and because they
could own their own businesses. North Omaha quickly became the heart of
the African-American community.

This page explores the history of African American work and business in
Omaha. The topic has been broken into three main sections: the
stockyards, the businesses of Twenty-fourth Street, and employment with
the Union Pacific Railroad. The stockyards (and the meat-packing plants
associated with them) were a major factor in attracting African
Americans to the city. Twenty-fourth Street was the center of North
Omaha's African American community during the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s,
but deteriorated during the turbulent years of the Civil Rights
Movement. In recent years, there have been efforts to revitalize the
district. The Union Pacific Railroad began employing African Americans
as strikebreakers during the Great Railroad Strike of 1877, and later
offered African Americans jobs as porters, cooks, and waiters. Although
these jobs were service-based, they generally paid much better than
jobs available in the South and were therefore well-respected within
Omaha’s Black community.

During World War II, the Hastings Naval Ammunition Depot (NAD), located
150 miles west of Omaha, played a central role in the nation’s war
effort. Life on the base usually consisted of work, work, and more work.
Soldier's responsibilities included everything from cleaning up to
loading munitions to playing to entertain officers and visitng
dignitaries. However, Hastings offered Black soldiers few entertainment
options when they were given a pass to leave the base. As a result,
Black troops looked toward North Omaha when they wanted to relax and
have fun.

During the years of the Civil War thousands of African Americans played a
crucial role in defending our freedoms. As the guns fell silent across
the nation these newly minted veterans saw new lives in the North.
Hundreds of veterans and their families established themselves in Omaha.
Among those who made Omaha home are three men: Edward Jones, Josiah
Waddle, July Miles. We learned about the roles they played in one of the
pivotal conflicts in our history.

America began taking direct military action in Vietnam in 1964 and ended
the draft and signed peace accords in 1973. North Vietnam and South
Vietnam were at war over the issue of communism. This conflict was a
continuation of the Cold War between the United States and Soviet Union.
The United States supported South Vietnam because it was non-communist.

This controversial conflict created tension in the United States, which
coincided with social, political, and racial unrest. The United States
military drafted many African Americans to fight in Vietnam. This
website celebrates the lives and contributions of Omaha’s Black Vietnam
Veterans.